Singapore now 4th most expensive city in the world for expats: Survey

The Republic climbs one spot from last year to come in fourth, behind two African cities and Hong Kong.

Night in Singapore: File Photo

SINGAPORE: The Republic is now the fourth most expensive city in the world for expatriates and the second most expensive in Asia, according to the latest cost of living survey by Mercer.

Singapore gained one spot from last year to come in fourth, behind two African cities – Luanda in Angola and N’Djamena in Chad – and Hong Kong.

Four of the top 10 cities in this year’s ranking are in Asia. The most expensive city in the region, Hong Kong, jumped from sixth place to third, followed by Singapore. Tokyo - previously Asia's most expensive city for expatriates - fell four places to seventh, while Shanghai came in 10th on the list, jumping four spots from last year.

“Rankings in many regions were affected by recent world events, including economic and political upheavals, which resulted in currency fluctuations, cost inflation for goods and services, and volatility in accommodation prices,” said Mr Ed Hannibal, Partner and Global Leader for Mercer’s Mobility practice.

“While Luanda and N’Djamena are relatively inexpensive cities, they are quite costly for expatriates since imported goods come at a premium. In addition, finding secure living accommodations that meet the standards of expatriates can be challenging and quite costly as well."

The survey covers 211 cities across five continents and measures the comparative cost of more than 200 items in each location, including housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment.

Singapore 'strongly condemns' killing of Israeli teenagers: MFA

"We convey our deepest condolences to the families of the victims and the people of Israel. Perpetrators of such heinous crimes must be swiftly brought to justice": Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement.

Israeli security forces stand guard next to their vehicles in the village of Halhul, near the West Bank town of Hebron, where the bodies of the three missing Israeli teenagers were found. (AFP/Menahem Kahana)

SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has issued a statement on the killing of the three Israeli #teenagers in the West Bank.

The statement, issued on Tuesday (July 1), said: “Singapore strongly condemns the killing of the three Israeli teenagers, who were first abducted on June 12, 2014. We convey our deepest condolences to the families of the victims and the people of Israel. Perpetrators of such heinous crimes must be swiftly brought to justice.”

The bodies of the teenagers were discovered in a field in Israel’s West Bank on June 30, 17 days after they disappeared, triggering a huge manhunt during which five Palestinians were killed and more than 400 arrested. Two Hebron Hamas men have been named by Israel as prime suspects.

- CNA/cy

Oil prices down in Asian trade

SINGAPORE – Oil prices eased in Asia Monday on softer #US demand, but tensions in the Middle East where jihadists have declared an Islamic state straddling #Iraq and #Syria will likely keep prices high, analysts said.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for August delivery was down 26 cents at $105.48 a barrel in late-morning trade and Brent crude dropped 22 cents to $113.08.

Analysts said investors are concerned after data last week showed that consumer spending in the United States, the world's biggest economy, rose by a mere 0.2 percent in May after flattening in April.

US jobless claims, another barometer for the giant American economy, totalled 312,000 in the week ending June 21, down just 2,000 from the week before.

As the world's top oil consuming nation, the health of the US economy is a key influence on oil prices.

Investors were also monitoring the latest news from the oil-producing Middle East, after militants said Sunday they were establishing a caliphate covering wide areas of Iraq and Syria.

The jihadists said their caliphate would spread from Aleppo in northern Syria to Diyala in eastern Iraq, and ordered Muslims in those areas to "obey" and pay allegiance to their new leader.

French bank BNP Paribas has raised its average oil price forecasts for 2014 and 2015 by 4-6 percent because of the developments in the Middle East.

"Geopolitics in the Middle East has recently introduced concerns about supply disruptions and, consequently, led to a sharp increase in global crude oil prices," it said in a commentary.

While actual supply shortages have not happened yet, "the possibility of uncertainties persisting and pushing up the price higher cannot be ignored," it added.

Other analysts have noted that Iraqi oilfields have remained operational so far.

"Insurgents are contained within northern Iraq and away from the southern oilfields," said Desmond Chua, market analyst at CMC Markets in Singapore. – Agence France-Presse